Tasty recipes from chef Ronit Penso's kitchen

Watermelon-Strawberry Chilled Soup and Popsicles

Buying watermelon is always a kind of gamble – even with all the suggested methods for choosing a good one, once you get home and cut it – it’s always a surprise. This time I ended up with a tasty watermelon, that unfortunately was very pale in color, far from the bright, appetizing one I was hoping for. Luckily, I also bought some beautiful fresh and sweet strawberries from the farm stand, so I’ve decided to combine the two in the form of a chilled soup.

The first version I’ve made, a sweet-salty and a bit spicy soup, was served as a first course for a light lunch. The second one, a simpler and sweeter version, was served as a light dessert, for a heavier dinner. Since I made more than needed of the last, I put the remaining portion into good use by preparing tasty and refreshing popsicles from it.
All the versions were a great success, and I have no doubt I will be making them again, as the watermelon and strawberry season has just begun. These easy no-cooking dishes are just perfect for hot days, when you don’t feel like turning the oven on. Try any of these versions and enjoy.

Note:
* This type of soup is at its best when served fresh. So, keep the prepared watermelon and strawberries chilled in the fridge, and blend the soup just before serving.

1. Place all the ingredients in a large bowl. Blend with a hand blander to a smooth soup. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
2. Divide into soup bowls. Add the Feta cheese, olive oil and mint leaves and serve immediately.

1. Place all the ingredients in a large bowl. Blend with a hand blander to a smooth soup. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
2. Divide into soup bowls, garnish with mint leaves and serve immediately.

Thank you Judi! I love both watermelon and strawberry soups, but I too didn’t combine them together until now. The main reason was adding some color to the pale watermelon, but now that I saw how good they work together, I will definitely combine them again.
The popsicles were also an afterthought, but again, worked so well. Sometimes improvisation works! 🙂

My dad had s knack for always choosing the sweetest tasting watermelon!! I love the vibrant colour of this watermelon and strawberry chilled soup and those popsicles are just what I need right now! Simply lovely Ronit 😊

Thank you Marisa, I’m glad you liked the recipes. I never mixed watermelon and strawberries until now, but will do from now on, as the result was so tasty and colorful.
Some people do have the gift of knowing whether the watermelon is good or not. I’m definitely not one of them… How great to have such a father! 🙂

Thank you, I’m glad you liked the recipes. I hope you’ll enjoy them as well.
You’re so right about homemade popsicles. They are so easy to make and so much healthier and tastier than commercial ones.
I too love making pineapple ones, and add a nice amount of fresh mint to them as well. If you want to try this version, you can find it in this link:https://ronitpenso.wordpress.com/tips/

😂 Imagine my surprise when I linked to that.. Seeing tomatoes..
I already knew the pomegranate tip but there was so much information in that one post ! That’s really full of useful info.. and of course the mint pineapple pops too 😊

Fantastic recipes! That soup… just yum. Now I know what I’ll do with parts of the truckload of strawberries I’ll be carrying home from the farmer’s market on saturday 😀 The time to think about ways to draw out the strawberry season is approaching in our corner of the world and your popsickles sound like the perfect way to do that~ If I can find a way to hide them from hubby….and myself for longer than a day or two 😀